Assault cases joined against Walworth man

A judge approved joining two sexual assault cases against a Town of Walworth man Dec. 13.

Lawrence C. Hisel Jr., 31, was charged Sept. 12 with having sex multiple times with a now-15-year-old girl when she was 12 and 13 years old.

He is charged with repeated sexual assault of a child as a persistent repeater in that case. The persistent repeater status, based on having been convicted of a sex crime previously, carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison if convicted.

On Dec. 13, a judge approved joining the case with a previous case in which Hisel is charged with four felony offenses – use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime, soliciting an intimate representation from a minor, child enticement and failure to maintain the state Sex Offender Registry.

A status conference is scheduled for Jan. 17 in the cases.

According to the criminal complaint in the newest case, the girl described multiple incidents in which Hisel had sexual intercourse with her. She said the first time was at her Elkhorn home when she was 12 years old and Hisel was 28 years old, according to the complaint. The girl said when she was 12 and 13 years old, Hisel had sex with her about eight times including at his home in Elkhorn, in his car at Burger King in Walworth, and at Babe Mann Park in Elkhorn, according to the complaint. The girl said she believes she contracted herpes from Hisel, the complaint states.

Hisel was convicted of second-degree sexual assault of a child in Walworth County in 2008 and sentenced to five years probation with a year in jail with work-release privileges as a condition of probation.